Architectural Guideline(TBD)
Community Guideline(TBD)
ArchiCG is an innovative editor and analysis tool designed to evaluate the benefits of using Interactive Compound Graphs derived from Architectural Descriptions. It supports descriptions created in various modeling languages, including standard languages widely used by diverse stakeholders involved in enterprise architecture and digital transformation, such as ArchiMate.
Note: ArchiMate® is a registered trademark of The Open Group®.
ArchiCG serves professionals working with End-to-End Digital Processes, Model-Based Systems Engineering, the industrial Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) approach (as defined by CIMDATA), and Enterprise Application Interoperability.
To achieve this, ArchiCG supports the creation of advanced interactive compound graph visualizations and includes algorithms for analyzing architectural descriptions and blueprints derived from various architecture description languages.
ArchiCG is not intended as a replacement for established modeling platforms or enterprise repositories. Instead, it complements these systems by providing the advanced features described above.
Accordingly, ArchiCG offers various import/export functions and an additional set of scripts for legacy modeling tools, such as Archi® and Enterprise Architect.
Built using standardized web technologies such as HTML, SVG, and JavaScript, ArchiCG runs on web browsers without requiring additional installations.
ArchiCG is a research demonstrator focused on showcasing and evaluating research outcomes related to Continuous Operational Interoperability, aimed at fostering digital collaboration within and between enterprises that employ Model-Based approaches. This demonstrator specifically addresses technologies like Linked Data, the Semantic Web, Standardized Application Protocols, advanced visualization techniques, and graph-based technologies.
However, ArchiCG can also be used for simpler tasks, such as quickly visualizing data in graph format with nested nodes, importing data, or creating data structures with the ease of a mind-mapping tool.
ArchiCG was launched at the end of 2024 to drive innovation in solving the challenges of secure, continuous digital collaboration in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environment.
The initiative was started by Dr. Nicolas Figay, external LIRIS collaborator, ISO (SC4 TC184) expert, Airbus collaborator, ASD Strategic Standardization Group member, and OpenPeopleFactory expert. Dr. Figay aims to disseminate and promote his research in areas such as “Interoperability of Technical Enterprise Interoperability” (PhD) and “Continuous Operational Interoperability” (HDR), along with practical solutions to advance the current state of the art and practice. Many organizations today face risks due to challenges in establishing secure, sustainable digital collaboration with continuous operational continuity.
This is especially crucial with the rapid emergence of technologies such as blockchain, Generative AI, Data Mesh, System Modeling, and Digital Twins.
Publishing ArchiCG and other tools as open-source is not only a way to disseminate research findings but also to engage a diverse range of users and stakeholders in further development and exploration.
Import models from Archi and other ArchiMate models repositories in order to take advantage of the functionalities provided by ArchiCG
This can be made relying on:- specific JSON data models
- the XML Open Exchange Format defined by The Open Group
- and in the future many other syntaxes
Collapse or Extend the graph nodes taking advantage of automated layouts adapted to compound graphs.
This can be done on:- the whole graph
- a given compound element
- a selection of elements
Collapse or Extend the Graph Edges taking advantage of automated layouts adapted to compound graphs.
This can be done on:- the whole graph
- a given selection of edges
- the edges existing between a selections of nodes
- grouping per types of edges
Let's change the presentation of a composite model.
This can be done by:- Transforming a graph of model elements with composition relationships on compound nodes
- Transforming compound nodes reflecting a composition in a graph
The composition relationships are preserved, even in not displayed on the graph.
You can also shows graph content as dynamic interactive matrixes, displaying various graph characteristics or calculate weights.
Let's manipulate the graphs in order to show what you expect
This can be done by:- Hiding a selection of nodes
- Removing a selection of nodes
- Preventing the users or the software to move a selection of nodes
The reverse operations can be made.
Selections can be made manually, through a filter expression on data (properties of nodes and edges) based on shortest path or neighborhood.
Let's Create complementary models elements, as nodes, compound nodes and edges
This can be done by relying on :- an enrichment of the ArchiMate language suited for Architects' needs
- specializations of ArchiMate language constructs
- ergonomic combined usage of a palette and of action buttons
The goal is to reach the same level of ergonomy than mindmap solutions.
Let's visualize, modify and create properties of the model elements and relationships
This can be done with :- the property pane displaying what concerns double clicked graph elements
- the node creation menu
- the node selection which then allow typing the label on the graph
The goal is to access both data model and visual properties of the nodes, in order to control both the content and how it is rendered.
Let's color the graph elements according two their values for a given property
This can be done by :- selecting the property
- automatically generating the colors legend and coloring the graph
The goal is to perform some visual mining in order to support the analysis of an architecture.
Let's visualize the graph as matrixes
With complex graph with many relations, you have to face the "hairball" effect. Adjacency matrixes provides alternative way for visualizing a graph. But many other kinds of matrixes can be derived for analysing an architecture:- matrixes of distance between nodes
- matrixes with relations between nodes
- Matrixes with shortest paths between nodes …
Proposing only a simple adjacency matrix with the current version, it is intended to extend the proposed interactive matrixes with those bringing value for the architecture analysis in future versions, including matrixes suited for compound graphs with lines and columns which can be collapsed and extended.
Let's filter models according to Architectural viewpoints
Based on ISO 42010 (Systems and software engineering — Architecture description), the ArchiMate language specification proposes a set of predefined viewpoints, which are suited for guiding production of views suited for different kind of stakeholders, having given concerns and purposes. ArchiCG allows to filter the palette according to these viewpoints.
Combined with the ability to export a visible graph as an ArchiMate view based on the Open Exchange Format and to preserve identifiers during import and export, it makes it possible to quickly push compound diagrams resulting from you analysis in you usual ArchiMate modeling tools supporting import of Open Format.
It is also plan to create you own viewpoints, or to use those which will be defined by the NATO Architecture Framework V4 when available
Let's visually traverse the graph
The model being a graph, it is possible from a node, an edge or a group of them to select:- connected edges and nodes or neighborhood with a given depth
- Shortest path from a source node to a target node if it exists
- Roots and Leaves …
Future versions will extend graph traversal to compound graph traversal, which is more suited for Composite Graph analysis
Let's develop exports script on your preferred tools (Archi, Enterprise Architect, etc.) in order to feed the ArchiCG viewer and analyzers.
ArchiCG comes with a set of jArchi scripts allowing to make some preprocessing before to export data to ArchiCG :- what is contained in a view or a set of views
- the content of a model
- a subset of a model
The goal is to be able to aggregate data coming from various model repositories relying on various products and languages, in order to aggregate them and perform required analysis on you desktop.
Let's produce pivot tables from the graph
An alternative way for producing matrixes from a graph is to generate pivot tables relying on legacy javascript libraries.
The produced pivto tables can in addition dal with fugures in order to perform some analytics.
Let's introduce new sets of icons dedicated to a particular topic
It is possible to add new sets of icons in the palette dedicated to a given topic which can be, or not, an extension of ArchiMate, or an alternative modeling language to be used in conjunction with ArchiMate.
An example is given with the "Complexity" tool which is about describing the compelx connected systems industry is dealing with, being for aeronautic, automative, space or city surveillance, with associated enterprise application families related to PLM, MES, MOM, ERP, etc.
Such visual elements can enrich the semantic of the cartography, using symbols not only for ArchiMate language derived constructs, but also for the kind of systems which are bing developed or supporting the working organisations.
Let's project your architecture on an interactive timeline
Let's project sets of architecture elemetns on an interactive timeline providing a synchronized view of the some predefined graph elements owning time related properties, such as starting and enging planned and actual date, or configuration management information related to time.
Related to the "timeline" tool, alpha version withc illustrates the feaseability
Let's automate algorithms defined for relevant architecture analysis
Relying on the set of available features for graph analytics and for advanced visualization, it is possible to create and includes modules launching parameterized treatments on subsets of your model, eventually filtered by relevant viewpoints, which are suited for such or such Architectural analysis, and to display it in the appropriate presentations for communication or results publishing, being in a document or in models repositories.
Let's register some animation on top of model for story telling applied to your model
It is possible to automate and registed a set of interactions with you graph model as an animation, which you can make available in ArchiCG and run on you model.
It can be used for communication purpose, or as a way to publish some results as dynamic animation, and not static (office documents) or impossible to change (videos) documents./p>